Press Releases
Transcript of SHWF on smoking penalty
Following is the transcript (English portion) of the remarks made by the
Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Dr York Chow, after attending a luncheon
today (April 21):
Reporter: Is it true the Government has come up with a figure to penalise
smokers who flout the anti-smoking regulations?
Dr Chow: No, we haven't changed the existing penalty of $5,000 for the
prosecution. Some of the proposals said that we should actually have a fixed
penalty, similar to the traffic offences, for people who smoke in the public
areas. We have not actually made any decision so far but we will perhaps need to
consider that when it is brought up by some of the legislators.
Reporter: So, do you have any figure at the moment?
Dr Chow: No, we don't.
Reporter: Can I ask one other question. Is it true there is a lack of senior
managers at the Hospital Authority? So that is the difficulty in finding a new
chief executive for the Hospital Authority in case Dr William Ho's contract is
not renewed?
Dr Chow: I don't know about this area. But as far as my experience goes, there
are many outstanding managers in the Hospital Authority and also there are
people who are experienced and willing to take up management jobs and also the
clinical side. So, depending on the situation of the Hospital Authority and the
direction of the Authority, some people might like to change job and pick up
management as their career, just like me some years back.
Reporter: (inaudible)
Dr Chow: I think any organisation would need to have a good succession plan and
I hope the Hospital Authority would be able to address all these gaps that have
been publicised.
Reporter: How confident are you that the laboratories in Hong Kong that deal
with live viruses are secure?
Dr Chow: At the moment, there are only two laboratories that deal with culture
of virus. One is the Department of Health and the other one is the one in the
University of Hong Kong. Both of them have the facilities and all the protection
as required by regulations. At the same time, they have very experienced staff
to look at the system and also ensure that all the biosecurity measures are
observed. I am quite confident that Hong Kong will be able to ensure, first of
all, we don't have any problems with our laboratories and even if there are some
mistakes, they can actually rectify them very quickly within the system.
Reporter: Would you conduct a review?
Dr Chow: We actually have reviewed the system before we license them. We also
have a regular audit of the laboratories. For example, the University of Hong
Kong laboratory has also been accredited by international accreditation
authority. So, they actually have a regular audit of their performance and also
their biosecurity measures.
(Please
also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript)
Ends/Thursday, April 21, 2005
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